Austin AM Coverage

[jras20]

Is Austin AM coverage one of the worst around? 590 can hardly go out 30 miles at night. I can only receive maybe 3 if I am lucky stations at night. Really about the clearest station I can get at night is WOAI. I wish other stations could be strong as WOAI AM is almost useless to me at night.

 

[Mediafrog+]

Not a new situation. The Austin nighttime patterns are all pretty much beamed to the west or southwest. Been that way for decades. I believe you are southeast of Austin, so virtually nothing is coming your way. All the co-channel slop at night makes it much more difficult.

Although blessed with a kick-butt daytime signal, 590 has long had modest coverage at night. Decades ago they would take grief from a 150kw blowtorch in Cuba, along with stations in Omaha and Atlanta.

 

[CW]

AND KLBJ is 5 kw day/1kw DA-N while WOAI is 50KW omni all the time....thats makes all the difference no matter what the night pattern would be (well also WOAI being a Class 1A while KLBJ being a Class B...kinda hard to use the two in comparison)...

 

[jd]

Although blessed with a kick-butt daytime signal, 590 has long had modest coverage at night. Decades ago they would take grief from a 150kw blowtorch in Cuba, along with stations in Omaha and Atlanta.

Exactly. KLBJ has also had problems for many years with co-channel XEFD, just across the border in Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas. XEFD is licensed for 5,000 watts non-directional, but often it has sounded much more powerful than that. In KLBJ's fringe areas it's really a battle, especially during critical hours. The Mexican station is supposed to cut back to just 250 watts at night, but that hasn't always been the case.